Internship Overview

HPA395 is a required professional internship that provides students the opportunity to apply skills and knowledge in a healthcare setting. Although students enrolled in HPA395 only pay for 3 credit hours, the University acknowledges HPA395 as a full-time equivalent course meaning you are considered a full-time student.

Internships in HPA

Learning in Health Policy and Administration goes beyond your time in the classroom.

Learn more about internships available for our HPA students

28%

of students were offered a full or part-time job because of their internships this summer

Student responsibilities

Virtual/remote internships are work experiences in which an employee works in a location other than a traditional office setting for example a home, coffee shop, library etc.

Obtain and log a minimum of 320 hours of work experience spread out over the 6-8 week summer semester.
Define learning goals (typically 3-5) on internship work plan to be completed during the internship related to a project or assignment.
Contact their preceptor or supervisor daily through various modes including Skype, FaceTime, Google hangout, Zoom, email or telephone for mentorship.
Complete weekly objectives toward project, meet with preceptor for weekly feedback.
Complete internship evaluation and Canvas course assignments.

Preceptors’ responsibilities

Create and assign project based assignment with intern to fulfill a minimum of 320 hours.
Develop list of deliverables and benchmarks student will produce each week(s)
Provide consistent communication with intern through Skype, FaceTime, Google hangout, Zoom, email or telephone for 15-20 minutes on a daily basis to engage in direct mentorship.
Provide intern with summative feedback on work activities for the week (s).
Integrate intern into work environment/culture as able.
Complete end of internship evaluation for intern.

CRITERIA FOR AN EXPERIENCE TO BE DEFINED AS AN INTERNSHIP (NACE, 2018)

To ensure that an experience—whether it is a traditional internship or one conducted remotely or virtually—is educational, and thus eligible to be considered a legitimate internship by the NACE definition, all the following criteria must be met:

The experience must be an extension of the classroom: a learning experience that provides for applying the knowledge gained in the classroom. It must not be simply to advance the operations of the employer or be the work that a regular employee would routinely perform.
The skills or knowledge learned must be transferable to other employment settings.
The experience has a defined beginning and end, and a job description with desired qualifications.
There are clearly defined learning objectives/goals related to the professional goals of the student’s academic coursework.
There is supervision by a professional with expertise and educational and/or professional background in the field of the experience.
There is routine feedback by the experienced supervisor.
There are resources, equipment, and facilities provided by the host employer that support learning objectives/goals.

HPA students complete administrative internships that can give them the expertise and problem-solving skills needed to tackle some of the most challenging issues in the health care industry.

At the undergraduate level, an administrative internship is required during either a student’s junior or senior year. The administrative internship is a 10-to 12-week, full-time work experience. It provides students with an opportunity to apply their developing knowledge and skills in health services administration/management, research, or, policy. The internship experience uniquely prepares students by exposing them to other professionals in the field and to the work environment in a way that cannot be duplicated in the classroom. HPA students participate in operations, finance, human resources and marketing while enhancing their critical thinking and effective communication skills.

Internship Portal

Students are encouraged to visit the internship portal to find all necessary information including the student work plan, internship evaluation, internship manual, preceptor resources, and student resources. Password to internship database will be given during HPA 390W.